Recent news about the Affordable Care Act may leave some people worried they can’t find or afford coverage, if they don’t already get insurance from their job.

But the U-M counselors say that for many people, the changes that have been in the news won’t affect them nearly as much as they might think. In fact, some people may even find better coverage for less money than they would have last year at this time.

The most important thing to do is to explore options as soon as possible, both for people who don’t have insurance right now, and those who buy their own insurance but might want to change it or see what their plan will cost in 2018.

Open enrollment for individual and family insurance plans offered on the Healthcare.gov Marketplace begins Wednesday, Nov. 1 and continues until December 15. Medicare open enrollment began recently and continues until December 7.

Other types of coverage, including the Healthy Michigan Plan for lower-income Michiganders, can enroll people year-round. The U-M team can help with those, too.

The team’s members offer in-person help via appointments and on a walk-in basis on weekdays between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. at several locations on the main U-M medical campus in central Ann Arbor, as well as at Michigan Medicine health centers in northeast Ann Arbor, Ypsilanti and Brighton.